| >> Is HS hereditary? |
Yes, HS does seem to run in families. We are not sure exactly how many families have more than one person with HS in it. Estimates are that between one quarter and three quarters of people with HS have another family member who has the disease. It may be higher because people are often reluctant to admit to having HS. Where HS does run in a family, it seems to be that if a parent has HS , then their children have a 50% chance of inheriting HS5. This type of inheritance is known as autosomal dominant. The ’HS gene’ has not yet been identified, but it appears that not everyone who inherits the gene develops the disease. |
